Manchester United are said to have made contact with Barcelona through versatile defender Andreas Christensen, although he has not played since August due to an Achilles injury.
The 28-year-old featured for 26 minutes of Barcelona’s LaLiga opener against Valencia but suffered a recurrence of an Achilles problem that first dogged him in March.
Christensen failed BarcelonaAs a result, the last 30 games in all competitions, watching from the sidelines as the club’s early form has been eroded by a catalog of disastrous defeats – Atlético Madrid now top the table ahead of Real Madridwith Barça in third position and six points behind.
Spanish publication SPORT report that Barcelona’s change of stance on the sale of Ronald Araujo: he had been strongly linked to Juventus and was also a target for Arsenal – has caused the club to reassess who they may be willing to let go in January.
Christensen’s name is mentioned alongside Eric Garcia, and the report mentions that United, who are 14th in the Premier League table but enjoyed a memorable FA Cup third round win against Arsenal on Sunday, they have been in contact with the former Chelsea star.
Nothing is said to have progressed beyond an inquiry from United who appear, at least on the face of it, to be well stocked in the central defense department.
Harry Maguire is enjoying a resurgence at the heart of a back three, flanked by a combination of Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro, Lisandro Martinez, Victor Lindelof and, at times, flying wing-back Noussair Mazraoui.
Christensen is also capable of playing the defensive midfield role, having operated for Barcelona in this position several times, albeit again. united have Manuel Ugarte and Casemiro on the books, with Kobbie Mainoo and Christian Eriksen also capable of stepping up if needed.
At the very least, Barcelona are likely to try to get someone out the exit door, given the continued delicacy of their finances. The club only has managed to temporarily register Dani Olmo until the beginning of April, with sales in January and in the summer the only feasible way to pay for possible new signings.
